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29 March 2010, 13:12
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#1
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Member
Country: UK - England
Boat name: Wasp
Make: Humber
Length: 5m +
Engine: Mercury opti150
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 3
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Gps plotter/ echo sounder
Peeps the dive club I'm in are looking to purchase a gps plotter / echo sounder for our rib we would like to spend no more than £700 for a combined unit ... Would any one have any recomendations please...
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29 March 2010, 13:22
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#2
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Member
Country: UK - England
Town: N. Devon
Boat name: (Not Another) Nutkin
Make: Highfield
Length: 6m +
Engine: Outboard, Honda 135
MMSI: 232036183
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 2,046
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Welcome accross young Ross.
I'm sure those in the know will be along shortly to give you their depth of knowledge - and just as YD there are some great fonts of knowledge on here.
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29 March 2010, 13:49
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#3
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Member
Country: UK - Wales
Town: West Wales
Make: Vipermax 5.8, SR4.7
Length: 5m +
Engine: 150 Opti, F50EFi
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 6,299
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Are you limited in what physical size unit you can fit?
Do you need chart software included? If so, do you need local or national charts?
Internal or external antenna?
£700 is a bit mid-market. There's loads of small units around for around £400-£500, but the bigger stuff tends to be £1000+
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29 March 2010, 13:59
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#4
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Member
Country: UK - England
Boat name: Wasp
Make: Humber
Length: 5m +
Engine: Mercury opti150
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Downhilldai
Are you limited in what physical size unit you can fit?
Do you need chart software included? If so, do you need local or national charts?
Internal or external antenna?
£700 is a bit mid-market. There's loads of small units around for around £400-£500, but the bigger stuff tends to be £1000+
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Max size we could fit on top of the console and behind the wind screen 10x 8 inch roughly.
We have an aframe so mounting an antenna isn't a problem
charts would be good ... We mainly dive local to us Lyme bay Weymouth but do head down Plymouth and Cornwall every once in while.:-)
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29 March 2010, 15:50
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#5
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Member
Country: UK - Wales
Town: N. Pembrokeshire
Boat name: Various
Make: RIBs & Hovercraft
Length: 9m +
Engine: Outboards
MMSI: Various
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 1,358
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Quote:
Originally Posted by treerat
Welcome accross young Ross......just as YD there are some great fonts of knowledge on here.
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Hi Ross, welcome.....
My migration happened the other way around to you....RIBnet to YD (Razorbill Dan on YD).
When we were looking for a new plotter for the RIB we went with the Standard Horizon C180i (i=internal antenna so no need to mount on A frame). Quite a lot of people on here recommended them....and they were right, the joystick is fab too.
The next size up C300i has larger screen, but IMO I am perfectly happy with the 180 screen size. I am, afterall, standing right next to it...
Dan
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29 March 2010, 16:51
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#6
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Member
Country: UK - Channel Islands
Town: Alderney
Length: no boat
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 3,047
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For a combined plotter/sounder I would start with the compact Garmins, they are all a similar physical size but you have three screen size and resolutions to choose from according to budget:
451S, 551S and 556S With prices ranging from about 420 to 680 with transducers. They all have a basemap included but more detailed charts are easily added if you find a need.
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29 March 2010, 16:56
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#7
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Member
Country: UK - Scotland
Town: Inverness
Boat name: none
Make: none
Engine: none
MMSI: none
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 1,908
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I would second that, for a club unit I would stick with Garmin as the are very intuitive. I prefer Lowrance now but only because I am the only one using them so the awkward bits aren't so awkward to use as I know them.
For lots of folk using them something that can be used with a limited amount of familiarity and no instructions is the best type of unit.
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29 March 2010, 16:57
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#8
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Member
Country: UK - Wales
Town: West Wales
Make: Vipermax 5.8, SR4.7
Length: 5m +
Engine: 150 Opti, F50EFi
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 6,299
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Quote:
Originally Posted by malthouse
They all have a basemap included but more detailed charts are easily added if you find a need.
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'basemap' is a bit of an understatement for these units. The pre-loaded chart software has the same detail as the Garmin Bluechart cartridges available for previous Garmin units. The 'G2 Vision' SD card upgrade gives underwater view, aerial photos, etc.
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29 March 2010, 17:02
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#9
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Member
Country: UK - Channel Islands
Town: Alderney
Length: no boat
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 3,047
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Downhilldai
.... 'basemap' is a bit of an understatement...
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Well said. That is why I put "if you find a need" but your way is much more succinct.
And yep, Bruce is right about Garmin - few people even feel the need to open the destructions as they work pretty much how you think they will.
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29 March 2010, 18:36
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#10
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Member
Country: UK - Wales
Town: N. Pembrokeshire
Boat name: Various
Make: RIBs & Hovercraft
Length: 9m +
Engine: Outboards
MMSI: Various
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 1,358
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Quote:
Originally Posted by malthouse
Well said. That is why I put "if you find a need" but your way is much more succinct.
And yep, Bruce is right about Garmin - few people even feel the need to open the destructions as they work pretty much how you think they will.
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As a caveat to my earlier post, I would agree that garmin is intuitive. It took me a little time to adjust to the Standard Horizon.....getting there now though.....and I really do like that joystick operation....
Dan
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29 March 2010, 18:40
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#11
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Member
Country: UK - Channel Islands
Town: Alderney
Length: no boat
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 3,047
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Worth
and I really do like that joystick operation....
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Nipple
The Horizons are great, but when it comes to value for money in the depth soundering then their need for a black box is a downer.
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29 March 2010, 20:37
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#12
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Member
Country: UK - England
Boat name: Wasp
Make: Humber
Length: 5m +
Engine: Mercury opti150
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 3
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guys thank you very much for the info so far :O)
Units i'm going to look at so far are ....
Garmin 5515 and a couple other simular
Lowrance HS5 and maybe the 7 if i can squeeze some more out of the commitee
Standard horizon cpf180i and maybe the 300
ive seen quite a good deal on a simrad NX40 NAVSTATION 8.4 INCH again this would involve hanging the committee up by the ankles and giving thema shake
Should i discount any of these to make the search easier ??
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29 March 2010, 21:01
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#13
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Member
Country: UK - England
Town: Gloucestershire
Boat name: Osprey
Make: Osprey Vipermax
Length: 5m +
Engine: E-tec 300 G2
MMSI: TBC
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 4,021
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rossc
guys thank you very much for the info so far :O)
Units i'm going to look at so far are ....
Garmin 5515 and a couple other simular
Lowrance HS5 and maybe the 7 if i can squeeze some more out of the commitee
Standard horizon cpf180i and maybe the 300
ive seen quite a good deal on a simrad NX40 NAVSTATION 8.4 INCH again this would involve hanging the committee up by the ankles and giving thema shake
Should i discount any of these to make the search easier ??
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I previously had a Garmin which was OK and had little trouble with it. I now have a Lowrance 38C (8" screen). TBH I prefer the Lowrance and I think the build quality is better. The transom mount trasducer is also a much stronger unit than the Garmin one.
I found both to be fairly easy to operate without the manual to hand.
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Chris Stevens
Born fiddler
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29 March 2010, 22:01
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#14
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Member
Country: UK - England
Town: Scillies
Boat name: Freedom
Make: Searider
Length: 5m +
Engine: Yam 2st 90
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 335
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I have an older Garmn GPSMAP 178 with sounder in B & W. Has been trouble free. I drove someone elses boat down here with Lowrance last summer (I don't have a clue which model). The biggest difference I found was my Garmin picked up Satelites and was opporational in seconds where the Lowrance took over 5 mins.
Just my tuppence worth.
Ian
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30 March 2010, 01:23
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#15
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Member
Country: UK - Wales
Town: West Wales
Make: Vipermax 5.8, SR4.7
Length: 5m +
Engine: 150 Opti, F50EFi
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 6,299
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I'm just finishing off a winter re-fit to my SR4.7 which has been treated to a new Garmin 551S. The menu system seems quite straightforward to use (in my garage, anyway - it hasn't been outside yet)
It's good to have all the UK charts pre-loaded, if you intend to take the boat to new venues.
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12 April 2010, 22:37
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#16
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Member
Country: UK - England
Town: solent
Make: morbass
Length: 5m +
Engine: 55hp mariner
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 122
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hi
have a look at the garmin 550s very easy to use and you should get change
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